Coming of Age
by KageNoYoko
Summary: After his friend is injured in combat for his sake, Jaune takes it upon himself to avenge her, and becomes stronger for it. Contains light hints Rosy Arc, and friendship. please remember that reviews are appreciated and help me to improve.


The smaller fighter released a loud cry as she was knocked off of her feet by the sheer power in the strike from her opponent, having only been able to just barely block the attack with her weapon, and went sailing across the room, the red cloak that she wore with a passion flying behind her as her broken body finally came to a stop, hitting the nearby wall with a crash, and slumping to the ground in a heap, immobile for the moment.

That was all of the incentive the spectators required to jump the barrier separating the combat floor from the spectator's box, and hurry to the side of the small girl, crowding around her in varying states of panic, while her opponent shouldered his weapon with a smug smirk of satisfaction, and turned to walk away, deciding the match was over with nary a second glance back over his shoulder.

Only one figure noticed the imposing man's retreating form, and the dark scowl that crossed her face made the temperature in the room drop to Antarctic levels, before her attention was returned to the downed competitor, who had begun to try and sit up.

The rest of the group surrounding her cried out, warning her to stay down and not move, considering the punishment she had taken only moments ago, but the black-haired girl ignored them, and with a pained groan, managed to rise into a partial sitting position.

"Be careful you idiot, you took that attack head-on, you shouldn't be so reckless and move so soon," snapped a familiar White haired girl, whose reprimanding brought a smile to the small girls face, despite the situation.

"Relax guys, I'm fine," The girl with the red streaks in her hair tried to persuade them to no avail, as when she tried to continue moving, she aggravated whatever injuries she might have, and fell back to the floor with a quiet whimper, sending her friends into a new panic.

"Ruby, it's going to be okay, We'll get you to the Nurse's office and she'll have you patched up in no time," A tall, voluptuous blonde stated, though the panic that could be heard in her voice killed any reassurance in her tone, and did little to ease the young girl's pains.

Carefully scooping the injured girl into her arms, the Blonde took off like a shot, moving at speeds none of the others could follow with their eyes, only the sound of the door into the room being body-checked open offering a hint as to where the two had gone, along with a small flurry of rose petals that blew through the room.

The rest of the group were left in a state of shocked silence for several minutes as they tried to come to terms with what had happened to their friend mere moments ago, and the audacity of her opponent, who they had only just now realized had simply walked away while they were fretting over the girl.

Finally a red-haired girl regained her senses and, in a sophisticated voice stated what everyone else had been thinking for the last few minutes, "I cannot believe that man."

The white-haired girl nodded in silent agreement, ice-blue eyes trailing back towards the door, which had been all but broken from it's hinges by the blonde's hasty retreat from the room, her mind in turmoil.

Another figure stood slightly away from the rest of the five teenagers, feeling his stomach in knots, and his blue eyes slightly unfocused, seemingly lost in his own thoughts.

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The Blonde haired girl released a heavy sigh as she sat down with her friends later that afternoon in the school dining hall, holding an apple in one hand that she took a large bite from, her slightly sharpened canine's glinting in the light overhead.

Having just come from the Nurse's office she was quick to explain everything the nurse had told her about her little sister's condition, and how she would be faring for the next couple of days, and if Yang had to admit it to herself (which she wouldn't) the older boy had definitely done a number on her.

According to the nurse, Ruby had suffered various injuries in the fight, and that, if not for her quick thinking and smart uses of her heavy reinforced weapon, very well could be dead.

"So she has a few cracked ribs, none broken, thankfully, got a minor concussion from when she hit the wall, and she injured her arm when she tried to shoulder that last power attack," Yang finished off explaining to the sombre group, before taking another bite from her green apple, juices dribbling down her chin as she chewed up her catch.

"I don't think that anyone would be able to come out of a fight with Cardin Winchester without at least some bruising, have you seen how much he relies on brute force in combat," A Black-haired girl commented without looking up from the book she was currently focusing her attention on.

The red-haired Amazonian's fists slamming down onto the table firmly gained the attention of the rest of the group, as the loud noise startled them, "I cannot believe Cardin did that to her, it is simply deplorable! Does that man not have any respect for his opponents?"

"Doesn't seem like it..." Yang muttered before taking another bite of her fruit and chewing on it thoughtfully.

seated at the end of the table, a blonde-haired boy idly toyed with the salad on his plate, pushing around a chunk of chicken with his fork, his heart not really into the meal, as he listened to his friends conversation.

"We have to do something about this guy, before he hurts anyone else like he did to Ruby," The oddly silent Pink-haired girl finally spoke, standing up from the table and slamming her hands open-palmed down onto the table, "I say we break his legs!"

"Sit down Nora," The black-haired boy sitting beside the excitable girl stated calmly, and had to suppress a small smile as she complied, now pouting, with her arms crossed over her chest.

"I agree with Nora though, We can't simply let Cardin get away with this, he injured a fellow huntress, and his attitude has been in dire need of some adjustment ever since teams were announced," Pyrrha spoke up, her tone firm as she shot a hard glare across the room, where the tall boy was sitting laughing his fool head off to some comment one of the other members of his team had said, seemingly unbothered by what he had done earlier that day. The Redhead suppressed a growl from deep in her throat, as she began to entertain the pros and cons of Nora's rather forceful method.

"What we should do is the smart thing, and take this to professor Ozpin, or miss Goodwitch, instead of making it our problem, let the faculty decide that idiots punishment," Weiss Schnee explained calmly, her focus kept on the topic of her nails, which she continued to file down idly.

"And let that jackass get off with a slap on the wrist and some harsh words! did you not see what he did to my little sister Schnee!" Yang growled, glaring at the seemingly uncaring white haired girl, "That girl is supposed to be your partner, don't you care at all about her!?"

"Of course I care!" Weiss shot back, "But there's no point in sinking down to Cardin's level just for the sake of petty revenge."

Seeing that a fight was about to break out between the two girls, the unusually quiet blonde pushed away his tray, and began to get up, gaining the attention of his partner, who looked up at him in concern, "Jaune, are you alright?"

Turning to look at the caring girl, Jaune managed to force a small smile in an attempt to reassure her as he spoke, "Yeah Pyrrha, I just feel like I need some air...maybe I'll go and visit with Ruby.." He stated, ignoring the way the experienced warrior's softened, and turned away from her before the guilt could start to build up in his chest again.

Pyrrha continued to follow Jaune with her eyes as he slipped out of the room, ignoring the Blonde and white-haired girls as their voices continued to rise in octave beside her.

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"You know it wasn't your fault, right Jaune?" A soft voice stated, gaining the blonde boy's attention, and knocking him out of his dazed whirlwind of thoughts suddenly.

Sitting up straighter in the chair that he had begun to occupy upon entering the room, the Blonde boy snapped his attention over to the Black-haired girl sitting in the bed beside him, with her one arm wrapped up in a cast, held by a sling, and wrapping around her torso, protecting the 15-year old's modesty.

a pair of kind Silver eyes tried to reassure to the blonde's woes, and Ruby managed a small smile as the two made eye contact, "What happened to me was my own fault, for challenging Cardin in the first place, and not taking the fight more seriously," She stated slowly, as if speaking to a young child, which softened the boy's own gaze upon her slightly.

"I know but...if I wasn't so weak, then you wouldn't of had to stand up for me, and challenged Cardin in the first place," The boy tried to argue, but stood down when he noticed the way the girl's eyes hardened, sinking down into the uncomfortable chair in defeat.

He stiffened when a familiar pale hand came to rest upon his own, and he looked up to see Ruby, smiling at him in that way that made his heart flutter in his chest in that pleasant way, not like when he rode on an airship, and had to suppress a small smile of his own, the girl's mood lifting up his own.

"I did what I chose to because your my friend Jaune, please don't beat yourself up over it," She asked, her voice soft, and making him shiver slightly at the peaceful smile she was now sporting, a far cry from the usually mischievous one she and her sister seemed to share when they were considering doing something harebrained.

Finally, after several minutes not quite knowing what to say, Jaune gently removed his hand from under his 15-year old best friends, and climbed back to his feet, a new determination in his heart, and a plan of his own in mind.

Taking a look back over his shoulder at his friend, sitting in that bed, looking perfectly content (though he knew better, that inside she was probably whining to herself childishly about wanting to go run around outside, instead of being stuck in here, and stifled a chuckle), and made his way to the door, a hand falling down to rest upon the sheathe/shield of his family heirloom, trying to pull strength from it.

He knew what he was going to do.

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The blonde boy jumped out of reach of the large, cumbersome weapon that threatened to take his head off, barely fighting the urge to try and block it with his shield, remembering what had happened to his best friend upon her own attempt at such a feat.

He and Cardin stood across from each other on the duelling platform, trying to size up their opponent, and planning their next attacks.

Jaune noticed how relaxed Cardin seemed to be, as he balanced the large flanged mace over his shoulder, confidence radiated from him as he eyed up the blonde, and had to stifle a growl in his throat, reminding himself to remain calm, a brief flash of the Black-haired girl, lying in that bed, wrapped up in bandages crossing his mind.

Hardening his eyes, Jaune began to charge at his brutish opponent once again, and noticed how Cardin smirked, and began to wind back with his mace, probably planning to bring it down onto his head, and quite possibly crack his skull open.

just as he closed the distance, and Cardin's mace began to come down at him, it seemed like time had suddenly slowed down around him, and he realized that he was now focusing upon everything with an alarming level of clarity.

He could count every bead of sweat that had gathered upon Cardin's brow, every muscle that was tensing under the Brunette's skin as he brought his punishing weapon down, and even how his feet were arranged, like it was all just a still drawing, or a black-and-white picture that had been taken.

Quickly brushing off this development, Jaune used this chance to plan his next attack carefully, taking into account everything about his opponent in the blink of an eye, and as time slowly resumed it's normal speed, made his move.

Cardin was startled when his opponent suddenly pulled a feint, doing a combat roll to the side of the heavy-built boy, and out of the range of his mace, which he now could not stop in mid swing, the weight of the weapon not allowing him much manoeuvrability when he was attacking.

Taking this moment of his opponent's shock to his full advantage, as soon as he was upright again, Jaune took a page out of his fellow blonde's books, and went for a CQC-style leg sweep, knocking the surprised boy's legs out from under him, and quickly pouncing on the opportunity.

as soon as Cardin hit the ground, with an audible cry of surprise, his mace lying forgotten just out of his reach after he released it in mid-fall, he found a familiar, slightly rusted sword pointed at his throat, and his eyes widened in surprise.

Jaune Arc stood over him, weapon poised for a killing blow. He had won the match.

A loud cheer sounded from nearby, and Jaune's attention was diverted away from his newly defeated opponent, as he realized the other occupants in the room. Most of his friends stood in the spectator's box, offering him various forms of congratulations, Yang and Nora being the loudest, as they cheered their heads off, much to the chagrin of the white-haired heiress, who had been forced to stand beside the two, and tried to cover her ears to no avail.

The Blonde boy even noticed, with a small smile, the Black haired girl, who was being supported by his team-mate and partner, a familiar red cloak clasped around her neck, with her arm still in a sling, and having most of her weight supported by the taller red-haired girl.

He even noticed, with no small amount of shock, the presence of a familiar silver-haired man standing a ways back, partly hidden in the shadows of the room, with a familiar white mug, and his cane, out of sight of most occupants of the room.

Turning back to his opponent, Jaune, after sheathing his weapon, kneeled down slightly, and held out his hand to the older man, showing a surprising amount of sportsmanship, and waited for a response.

he was not disappointed when the proud young man batted away his hand, grunting in anger, before trying to lift himself back to his feet, the weight of his thick armour impeding his progress.

Now content to ignore his opponent, Jaune began to walk towards his friends, who were still offering him congratulations, and he noticed that even Ren, Blake, and Weiss were offering him a respectful clap, though the white-haired girl had her head turned away, and was scowling.

What he didn't see, was his opponent get to his feet and, in a fit of anger for losing, grabbed onto his discarded mace, and begin to charge at his unawares opponent, planning to attack when his back was turned.

This attempt on the boy's life was abruptly stopped when, simultaneously, two weapons crossed underneath the mace's long shaft, mere inches from the blonde's head.

Looking down at who had stopped his attack, Cardin growled when he came face to unamused faces of one red, and one Black haired girls, a familiar Spear and sword firmly keeping the mace in place, and a pair of cold glares warning him off of another attempt like his first.

Huffing in undisguised annoyance, the tall and well-built man instead turned and walked away, not willing to risk the wrath of the two women further.

putting away their weapons, the two turned to find the blonde boy they had just protected speaking to the black-haired girl, who was now being supported by her older sister, reprimanding her for being out of the nurse's office, while the blonde haired girl laughed at her baby sister's embarrassed blush, and the was she was poking her fingers together meekly.

This was the moment that the silver-haired man decided to make his presence known in the room, as he stepped from the shadows, receiving the reaction he was aiming for, an excitable Pink-haired girl gasping audibly from beside her Black-haired best friend, making the headmaster smirk and congratulate himself for still having the WoW factor even today.

"That was a very impressive thing you did today Jaune," The man complimented the boy, "In a single day you have managed to personify everything that a hunter should be."

Jaune remained shocked at the presence of the headmaster, and could barely manage a stuttered out response, though the older man did not allow him to speak for long before continuing.

"Honour, Camaraderie, Justice, remember kids, these are the things that truly make Hunters, and Huntress what they are, we are the people's shield and sword, and this is a burden we must all bear."

all of the teens were silent at the man's announcement, which made him smile, as he turned on his heels and began to walk away.

"Oh, and remember to show up to class early tomorrow, I have been hearing from professor Port about your recent chain of tardiness, and I would prefer that to stop sooner rather than later. This especially goes for you, miss Xiao Long."

Yang had the sense to look ashamed, though Jaune noticed out of the corner of his eyes the smirk and wink she gave to her baby sister, and the way the silver-haired girl rolled her eyes.

"And get well soon miss Rose," The man offered as a final comment, before departing the room fully, and allowing the group of eight to resume their celebrations for their close friend.

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Ozpin wandered the hallway in quiet contemplation for several minutes, allowing his feet to lead him away from the gymnasium while he turned over thoughts in his mind.

He finally stopped before a large painting, and allowed his eyes to once again take in every detail of it with a fine, trained eye, appreciating the beauty of the object in silence for several minutes.

This was quickly broken upon the appearance of his aide, and her no-nonsense attitude, "there you are Ozpin, you know that those forms will not handle themselves," She stated, grabbing the man by the arm and beginning to pull him back in the direction of his office, where he knew he had work to do.

"Miss Goodwitch, please be sure to keep an eye on Mr. Arc, I believe he will soon be showing much improvement in the classroom, and I would like to hear all about it," the man asked calmly, and for a second thought he had seen his assistants eyes soften at the mention of the blonde goofball.

"Of course sir," She replied in her normal flat tone, "now get back to your office and finish those forms, I do not need hunting you down and dragging you back to work added onto the list of duties I have to do in a day, I'm already overtaxed as it is!"

"Of course Glynda, of course." The man replied with a small smile of his own.


End file.
